Industry must cooperate to combat illegal downloads: iiNet

Internet service provider (ISP) iiNet has called for a whole-of-industry discussion to make content more available online, following the High Court’s decision today to grant special leave to appeal by a film and television industry conglomerate, who are suing the ISP for copyright infringement by its customers.

iiNet chief executive, Michael Malone, said in a statement that given the significance of the issues involved, he was not surprised the High Court had decided to review the case.

"Nevertheless, I know the internet industry is eager to work with the film industry and copyright holders to develop a workable solution," he said.

"We remain committed to developing an offering that seems more content ready and cheaply available online, as well as a sensible model for dealing with repeated copyright infringement activity."

Malone also said that the ISP will continue to defend its position in these proceedings if necessary.

"I remain convinced that a genuine industry-wide offering is a better outcome for all concerned and I'm hopeful it will be developed," he said.

In response, the 34 film and television companies said they were confident of their grounds of appeal, and looked forward to presenting their arguments to the High Court later this year.

At the time, Australian Home Entertainment Distributors Association chief executive, Simon Bush, told Computerworld Australia that various sectors of the film industry were working on strategies to address piracy and meet consumer demand for digital formats.

One idea was to shorten the window between when a film was released in the cinema and became available online.

Copyright 2018 IDG Communications. ABN 14 001 592 650. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of IDG Communications is prohibited.